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I remember my parents getting our family’s first computer from my school in the ’90s. It was small and the screen was black with green lettering. It was primarily for communication between parents and teachers, but it was cool and it was useful. Our next computer took residence on a huge desk right near our dining room table. I didn’t use it much, but I watched my parents and my ...[continue reading]

I worked as a janitor at St. Camillus elementary school after school and in the summers when I was in high school. I enjoyed the camaraderie with the other high school kids I worked with, and the crusty Dutch man who was our boss. We cleaned every afternoon in the school year and on weekends, and then painted, cut the grass, and did maintenance on the heating system and other equipment in the summer. We ...[continue reading]

Usually when people retire they downsize. We upsized. My wife and I built our retirement home near Knoxville, Tennessee, many hundreds of miles from our children, parents, and siblings. We wanted plenty of space to host family and friends, even if they arrived in bunches or stayed for months.[continue reading]

In my view, Google's acquisition of Nest is a very good sign for the home performance industry. Why? Because the underlying math that had to have been Google's calculus for justifying a $3.2 billion valuation is fundamentally the same as that which drives home performance. Let me explain.[continue reading]

A few weeks ago I was performing a two-day Company Overview for Reliable Air Conditioning in Jasper, AL. When I arrived I was introduced to the office staff , including two individuals who focused on nothing but telemarketing. That immediately got my attention. Few trades companies utilize a telemarketing program. Telemarketing can be irritating when total strangers are called; however, when utilized on one's current customer base, it can be very effective.[continue reading]

The age-old question of “what will I be when I grow up?” can be a dark and dreary segue into the unknown for today’s young adults. They face challenges of unprecedented magnitude. A weak job market coupled with a wide income gap, social disparities, volatile swings in government policy, and waning municipal and state budgets generate far more questions than answers.[continue reading]

I was reviewing an article in Home Energy by Steve Mann that came out in the January/February issue (“DOE’s Challenge Home,” p. 6). He wrote on the latest iteration of DOE’s Challenge Home Program. Steve points out, in his usual insightful and articulate way, what he sees as the strengths and weakness of this program. I hope you’ve read it, or will read it. Send us your ...[continue reading]

One of the biggest developments in the U.S. residential solar photovoltaic (PV) market over the past few years has been the significant growth of residential solar PV systems not owned by homeowners. These are often referred to as third-party-owned systems.[continue reading]

As the clock counts down to 2014, you might be thinking about ways to generate more business in the new year. The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Better Buildings Neighborhood Program partners have learned that word of mouth is one of the strongest communication channels to drive demand for energy efficiency upgrades. If you’re interested in upgrading your marketing approach, you might want to consider a new year’s resolution or ...[continue reading]

On November 1, 2013, Home Energy began its 30th year in existence. The storytelling will begin officially in our January/February 2014 issue, when, along with a lot of new content and some new features, we reprise an article from our first issue—on the energy efficient use of water beds! Unofficially, the storytelling has already begun. Home Energy began in an office at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and a few years ago we moved our shop ...[continue reading]